Sendak never settled for prettiness; his illustrations for folklore demonstrate a respect for the tales’ immense power. The Juniper Tree and Other Tales from Grimm (1973), selected by Lore Segal and Maurice Sendak, translated by Segal and Randall Jarrell, and illustrated by Sendak, features Grimm favorites including “Rapunzel,” “Hansel and Gretel,” and “Snow-White and the […]

It’s a shame that Sendak’s only extended prose work for children is the wonderful Higglety Pigglety Pop, but his tender illustrations for novels by Randall Jarrell and Meindert DeJong demonstrate the artist’s reach beyond the picture book. Sendak’s daring imagination weaves a simple rhyme into the complex and brilliantly original tale Higglety Pigglety Pop! Or, […]

There’s no need to leave Sendak behind when children begin reading for themselves. Entirely original in approach and content is Ruth Krauss’s A Hole Is to Dig (1952), illustrated by Sendak. In this “first book of first definitions,” Krauss, with the help of children themselves, gives us such gems as “a seashell is to hear […]

Sendak’s self-styled trilogy about children confronting and mastering fear has inspired much debate and more than a few dissertations, but generations of children have managed all on their own to “only connect” with these three masterpieces. Where the Wild Things Are (1963), Sendak’s best-known work and the 1964 Caldecott Medal Winner, has proved utterly engrossing […]

Last year, I went to Maurice Sendak’s house to spend a day with the Sendak Fellows, four artists who were given time and studios to work on any project they desired, as well as access to Maurice for advice and encouragement. So who better to talk about his legacy? I asked each Fellow “what’s the […]

(art by Hanna Friederichs). We saw The Avengers last night–kinda long and the special effects in the last third of the movie too easily betrayed their origins, but it was diverting. I liked Thor more. As a child, I found the Marvel Comics universe a cooler and harsher place than Superman’s DC world, and on […]

A Hole Is to Dig written by Ruth Krauss, illus. by Maurice Sendak, Harper, 1952 Entirely original in approach and content is this “first book of first definitions” in which Miss Krauss, with the help of children themselves, gives us such gems as “a seashell is to hear the sea”; “cats are so you can […]

We remember the incomparable Maurice Sendak, longtime Friend of The Horn Book, with these articles about, interviews with, and writings and illustrations by the great man, along with select reviews of his books. It’s My Party: An Interview with Maurice Sendak by Leonard S. Marcus, from the September/October 2011 issue of The Horn Book Magazine. […]

Maurice Sendak died last night at the age of 83. There will be many forthcoming tributes to this great artist, including quite a lot of material by and about him from The Horn Book Magazine, which we will be posting on our website for you as we can. But I wanted to take a minute […]